Finding Peggy
by ThePeculiarAvenger
Summary: Post Avengers (pre - Winter Soldier) AUish. What if Hydra had captured Peggy on a mission gone wrong? All these years later, Steve has a chance to get his Dance Partner back. Rated T just cause I don't exactly know where this is going! Also, I don't know who all will make an appearance, so the characters list is not everybody.
1. Chapter 1: Realization

A/N: Thank you for reading my first ever published fic! This is a slight AU that takes place pre – Winter Soldier but post – Avengers. Events in the MCU before my story will be pretty close to canon, I may shift some pairings to my liking, but hey, this site was literally invented for us to change stuff. I own nothing! Enjoy 3

Chapter 1

Steve was trying to get caught up.

Natasha especially had been extremely helpful, leading him to the archives of SHIELD and giving him the documents he needed to piece together what all had happened since he'd gone under. However, that was only the save – the – world – and - don't - trust – anything side. For the non – intelligence side of things, there had been a friend that he never would have expected.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_"On your left," Steve panted as he ran past his new running partner. Sam could tell that the Super Soldier was unsettled by something. He was running hard and fast, pushing himself more than a normal morning run would merit.

"Hey, you look stressed," called Sam. "you wanna run through Conson Street and finish at the bakery? (I know no actual street names; this takes place in New York but many places will be entirely fictional)

"I'm fine, I just didn't sleep well last night," Steve responded from behind. "The Bakery does sound good, though. I'll take you up on that offer."

"Great."

"On your left!"

"One black coffee, one coffee with cream, one Double Breakfast and one chocolate glazed doughnut." The waitress delivered their food, and after a minute or so of just eating, Sam began to prod.

"So, you didn't get enough sleep."

" Nightmares. Read a few reports from way back when. Stirred up some unpleasant memories."

"Y'know, normally I would give a speech about avoiding known triggers, but in your line of work that can't really be helped. Did you do your homework?"

"I did. The album was pretty good, I really think Beyonce lives up to the hype."

"Alright, now that you've listened to some classics and some current pop, I think you should ask your friends for their favorites. Work playlists, dancy stuff, whatever."

"Are you sure? Tony listens to death metal and half of Natasha's stuff is Russian…"

"You'll be fine. Start with Maroon 5, they're great."

The men talked for a bit longer, then Steve's phone went off. "I guess I should get to work, I'll see you." Steve finished the last of his breakfast.

"Alright, I'll see you around." Steve and Sam parted ways.

Later that day, Steve had picked up where he'd left off. Maybe he should have gone on to a different section rather than expose himself to painful memories two days in a row, but Steve wasn't the type to leave stuff half finished. He'd been going through relatively mundane papers when he stumbled across a folder stamped with black inked warnings on every surface. Having never been one for bureaucracy, Steve opened it.

 **Issue: Agent Missing**

 **Urgency: Top**

 **Overview:**

This part was written in ink, as if an agent who'd been part of the mission had filled it out.

 _Director Peggy Carter and myself were in charge of an infiltration mission; we only had to observe & retrieve. It would not have merited the Director of SHIELD to be on the mission herself had it not been that we were directly infiltrating a faction of HYDRA itself. We got inside and retrieved the papers, as well as made some key observations about the facility itself. However, on our way out, we were ambushed. As if they had been waiting for us. Both Director Carter and I fought to the best of our ability, but there were more of them than there were of us. As I was the one with the goods, Director Carter gave me explicit orders to complete the mission, and fought for long enough to get out. As soon as I had left, she was overpowered and taken to a holding room. We were in the Experimental Treatment wing at the time, looking for clues as to their Human Experimentation efforts. I fear that Director Carter may have been taken into those efforts, and I implore the agents above me to make quick action towards a rescue mission. Please._

 _Agent Jack Yates_

Another piece of paper fell to the floor. Steve supposed it was one that he mission had retrieved, but right now, he was thinking of anything but that. Peggy had been taken, and now , after all these years, he was in a position to help her.

"Natasha!" He called, as he left the archives, with paper in hand.

Sorry for the cliffhanger! I needed to have a sort of 'prolouge' chapter, and now the story can really get started ;) Please R&R!


	2. Chapter 2: Gathering

Hey! I'm back! This chapter may be a bit more buildup but things should start to get rolling. Thanks to Crowley's Apprentice for unofficially Beta Reading BOTH of these chapters! If you've read Ranger's Apprentice, you should go read her fics. Seriously, go do it as soon as you finish this chapter.

Chapter 2

"This is big. I didn't even know about this – did you even look at the classification on this folder? What exactly were you looking for?!" Natasha's voice varied from disbelief to scolding as she finished reading what Steve had brought her. "Did you find anything else related to this issue?"

"This report and the documents mentioned in it were the only things in this folder," Steve explained. "Before it was just boring status reports, a lot of departmental status reports, and a few complaints about having a woman in charge. I, well, I got kind of distracted, and I didn't look at whatever was after it."

"We'll start there, then." Natasha strode off towards the archives with the folder in her hand and a look of determination on her face. Steve had no choice but to follow.

"All of this stuff is more of the same. It's like the folder fell off a stack and landed in a totally different pile! Dead end." Steve couldn't keep the frustration out of his voice.

"I thought as much, but it was worth checking." Natasha treaded carefully, heading deeper into the dark room.

"Where are you going?!"

"Think of the classifications on the folder as a code. If you know what it means, It'll lead you back to wherever it came from." Flicking on a small light on her wrist, she began examining the file cabinets, occasionally looking down at the folder for reference. A few rows down, she stopped. "Here." Opening the drawer, Steve saw maybe four other folders, marked similarly with black ink. Flicking through the pages, a scowl grew over his face. "They did, like, nothing. They saved their own skin. This stuff here is details. They assessed the risk, attempted contact, then closed the case." Anger crept into his voice as the reality hit him. "I want answers," Steve growled. As he turned down the hall to storm away, Natasha grabbed his arm.

"We have to do this ourselves."

"What?" Steve looked at her incredulously. "We can't break into a HYDRA facility by ourselves! Heck, we need to run intel & observations. The two of us aren't even half the manpower we need!"

"Forcing them to admit they were wrong won't work. No matter how much Hill likes us, Fury won't let us do squat. If we try going up against him, that'll only tip him off, and then we really won't be able to rescue her."

"I assume you have a plan?"

" I know people. We can get others on our side. You're an army brat, but if we do this, we'll need to do this the intelligence way." Natasha looked him in the eye, dead serious. He could feel her examining him. "I can make this happen on your signal. "

"Let's do it, then." Steve didn't hesitate for a moment. He'd left Peggy behind all those years ago, and now he would get her back. He had to. Natasha nodded.

"Follow me." Together, they wound through the industrial halls. Nat knocked lightly on the vent above her head. "Code Black." Reaching for the comm in her ear, Steve heard a burst of static as she changed her channel. "Maria. Code Black, please." Steve frowned. Y'know, I think I have an army buddy I can call."

"I thought all your army buddies were dead," Natasha shot back.

"Yeah, yeah. Where are we meeting?" Steve was starting to see how this so called "plan" would work.

"Nuclear war bunker. Clint and I have been using it for ages. We know it's clean."

"Alright. Tell you what: you get your people, I'll get mine." Natasha raised an eyebrow, apprehensive. All Steve saw was her questioning his sanity. "I can do this. I'll meet you in your bunker, 30 minutes." With that they headed their separate ways.

Steve poked his head into the room full of people. It looked like the meeting had just disbanded, which was perfect. He was looking only for the person who had been leading it.

"Hey Steve, what's up? Come on in, this is basically my office."

"Thanks, Sam, I was wondering if you could help me with something." Sam took a seat, and so did Steve. "I'm just gonna say this at the start, you're welcome to decline."

"Well, that's not the usual way to get people to help you out." Sam raised an eyebrow. "Now I'm curious. What do you need?"

Steve had always found the whole classification levels thing rather stupid, so he had no qualms about telling Sam the entire story.

"So, you want me to help you and a few of your friends rescue this girl, going against the wishes of your superior officers, as well as possibly putting myself on the radar of an evil association that would otherwise not care about me, in addition to the possibility that I could die?" Sam had been an exceptional listener for the past few minutes.

"Like I said, you can always say no." Steve had to admit, when you put it that way, it was a lot to ask of your running partner.

"Don't worry, I'm in! Let's go rescue your girlfriend. I have some gear that might be useful…"

Steve was shocked. "Thanks! We can get your gear, then we have one more stop before we meet Natasha."

45 minutes later, Natasha opened the bunker to find Captain America, Iron Man, and a stranger with a winged jetpack (who looked a lot like Steve's new running partner) standing at the door.

"You're late. Wanna tell me what happened?"


	3. Chapter 3: Plan

Sorry for making last chapter so late. I apologize! Thanks again to Crowley's Apprentice, without her you wouldn't get anything worth reading from me ;) I will try to update at a more regular pace, but I'm still getting used to writing fics instead of just reading them… Anyway:

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Chapter 3

Tony looked around the room at the small group of people, all of whom were looking expectantly at Steve and Natasha. He knew all of them, even Sam Wilson, who he'd been introduced to on the ride there. What he didn't know was what they all had in common (Not all of them were Avengers, or worked for SHIELD) or why they were in a concrete bunker 50 feet below the lowest SHIELD sublevel. Tony didn't like not knowing things.

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Sam was sitting in a room full of Avengers. Avengers and spies. Were they all going to rescue Steve's girlfriend? Why were they in a war bunker again? He was all for helping out a friend, and it wasn't like he'd never run a high – risk rescue before, but even so, Steve had some explaining to do.

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Natasha looked around the room at the faces before her. She had never seen a mission with worse prospects. Oh well. Her job _was_ to do the impossible, after all. She'd just never done something quite so…. Impossible.

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"Alright, everybody, I know not everyone here knows each other, so we're going to –" He cut off before he could continue with an icebreaker. He remembered Natasha, how she'd told him they'd need to do this mission differently. Do it her way. "We're going to say who we are, and why we're here, and how we can help this mission." Hill raised an eyebrow.

"What _is_ this mission?"

Natasha came to his rescue. "Please, Maria, try not to be in charge for just a few minutes." That shut her up.

"I'll go first. I am Captain Steve Rogers. I'm here because there is somebody very important to me that I should have saved a long time ago. I'm good at leading, and I can keep my head in the game."

"Natasha Romanoff. I am here because I have an opportunity. A good one at that. I can get answers and get the job done."

"Hawkeye, trick – shot extraordinaire. I'm here 'cause I like Steve and Nat told me we had a mission. I can take out some bad guys, and I follow orders most of the time."

"I'm Sam Wilson, I'm helping out a friend, and I want to help out our country again. I have the Exo – Falcon pack here, and I have war training as well. I'm a pilot."

"You know who I am. I'm here 'cause I'm a superhero, and superheroes save people. They also help their friends. And y'know, I just happen to have a fully – armed power suit on me. No big deal."

Hill rolled her eyes. "I'm Commander Maria Hill; I'm here to fix a mistake I didn't make. I do that a lot. I'm handy with firearms, and I've had 14 years of training as a SHIELD agent."

Steve leaned forward, embows on his knees and hands clasped as his head rested on top of them. "Alright, here's the deal. Agent Peggy Carter was the founder of SHIELD, and director as well, until a Hydra faction, specifically their Human Experimentation team, captured her. We are going to get her back."

"How do you know this again?" Hill looked suspiciously at Natasha.

"I found a folder when I was looking through reports am catching myself up. It's a good thing I did, because looking through related files told the whole story. SHIELD gave up on her a long time ago, now it's our job to get her back." Steve looked around the room. Tony was frowning at Hill, Natasha looked at him expectantly, and the others were all nodding. "All of the mission files were there, which is good, because that's all we have to work with. Even if I was comfortable using the computers for our information, they track who logs on when and what files they access. Fury would be onto us in a heartbeat." There was muttered "Faster than that," from Clint.

"As the case was closed roughly 60 years ago, there is little chance of someone going looking for the hard files. So this is what we have at our disposal." Steve passed the documents around the room. As they reached Hill, he heard a sharp intake of breath, probably related to the classifications on the folder. He leaned back in his chair. He'd done his part, and now it was time for Natasha to take over."

"Stark and Wilson will go first. By the time they get us an updated scan, Clint and I will have arrived in a quinjet. As Steve and Maria go in on the ground, the four of us will create a distraction. With any luck, as Clint and I attack, Stark and Wilson will be able to get inside and rendezvous with Steve and Maria." Shooting a look at Steve, she continued. "As soon as they get the info, Tony, Maria, and Sam will head elsewhere to cause more distraction, while Steve heads in and rescues Agent Carter. He has been adamant that he will do this on his own. Clint and I will get out of the way, off the radar. On Steve's word, _all_ of you will board the qui jet. If everything goes according to plan, we'll have Agent Carter with us."

Shocked faces gazed around, heads turning in wonder as they realized this near – suicidal plan could work.

"We'll have to do everything perfectly," Hill commented.

"Then it's a good thing we have a team of people who'll never settle for less," Steve agreed. Sam began to laugh. It was contagious, and soon everyone had gathered in a group, arms around each other.

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Thanks for reading! I hope I wrote this well, and I will try to write chapter 4 faster as I know you are all excited for some Steggy romance! Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleeeeeease review!


	4. Chapter 4: Mission

Hey all! I'm sorry this is so late, I had a family trip. Thanks to Crowley's Apprentice for all she does, and if you are a Ranger's Apprentice fan, you should totally read her fics. I know you're all excited for THE MISSION so, without further ado,

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Chapter 3

The data bleeped onto the screen just as any other transmission would, and yet for Clint Barton, this one practically made his heart stop. "it's a go," he told the woman seated in the pilot's chair. Natasha's face was her regular emotionless mask, the same one she wore every mission. Wordlessly, she nosed the plane downwards, and soon, they'd met up with the two figures speeding upward towards them.

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Maria watched the small plane speed towards the facility, accompanied by two smaller figures. She waited three seconds. As the plane was enveloped by smoke and flame, she glanced at the soldier standing at her side. Tony's blast had been the signal, and now the pair had to make it into the building. The blast should have concealed Natasha and Clint, and the plane could take far more abuse than the flames that had been blown at it. So far, so good.

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As Sam reached the hall that would lead him to the meeting point, he had to land on the ground as the ceiling became lower than would be practical for flying. Tony came in right behind him, his mechanized voice echoing a bit, even as he altered the volume control. "We're definitely underground now. You see Capsicle anywhere?"

Hill swiftly stepped out of a shadowy stairwell, closely followed by Steve as her fingers traveled from her comm link to her wristband.

"Hey, what are you doing? FRIDAY, run a diagnostic!"

"It would appear that her technology has arrested our volume controls, sir. No malware evident."

"Nothing else to make you shut up," Hill retorted. "You seem to have missed the part where we're _sneaking into a facility where almost everybody wants to kill us._ This is where we split. Rodgers, you know where you're going?"

"Yes, commander, and I'm on the comm line, so I can hear if anything goes wrong."

"Alright, we'll see you on the other side. Stark, Wilson, flank me."

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As they encountered their first hostile, Maria Hill calmly put a bullet in his neck. A door opened, and before anyone could step out, Tony pitched another bomb into the room. As the smoke cleared, Sam was still bent over coughing, so not only did Maria have to put bullets in the patrol coming their way, she also had to fight off the few guards who had made their way out of the room Tony had bombed. Sam quickly recovered, and soared up into a freshly blasted hole in the ceiling. The sharp edges of his wings cut down the three unfortunate fellows in the room above them as he turned a circle in the air, shooting flanchettes from his wings while diving down to start the whole thing over again. As Tony flew off, the remaining pair heard explosions in the distance.

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Steve thrust his shield in to the neck of a patrolling officer, and then moved quickly onward. Every soldier he had to deal with was another reason to get out of there before someone got suspicious. A few yards down, he found a hallway blocked by a locked gate, the bars so thick that the hallway itself could have been a prison cell. As he caught sight of the door at the far end, Steve knew this what the place he was looking for. He wasted no time in bringing his shield down on the lock. The noise brought the attention of a guard, who was already reaching for a walkie-talkie. Steve's shield hit him in the wrist and ricocheted up to his jaw. The man slumped, unconscious, on the ground. A few footsteps later, Steve quietly slid the deadbolt off the door. He retrieved the key to the lock on the doorknob, and slowly opened the door, with his shield in front of his face.

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Peggy heard a dull thud in the hall outside her cell, accompanied by the clang of metal on the floor, presumably muted by whatever had caused the thud. Her impeccable instincts had given her a certainty that something was not right maybe 15 minutes ago, and now she calmly removed a cushion from the couch, turning to face the door as it creaked open.

Never in a thousand years could she have expected what she saw.

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Steve lowered his shield, shock blooming onto his features as he realized that finally, after all these years, he was reunited with the one girl who had stolen his heart. As he made his way toward her, a question fell off her lips. A word. A name.

"Steve?"

"Peggy."

Without thinking, Peggy closed the distance between them. Their lips met, and she closed her eyes, safe in his arms. He could have been an impostor, sure, but even without perfect instincts, years of intelligence told her that no one was capable of impersonation this perfect.

An explosion shook the ceiling above their heads. The pair broke apart. "We should get out of here. Tony's getting a bit overzealous with the explosions." As Steve turned towards the door, she held his arm.

"Steve… " Peggy took a deep breath. "What year is it? How much has changed? Who is Tony? Who are you here with?" _Of course._ Steve had forgotten that Peggy would likely be confused and disoriented, and _of course_ she would ask a million questions. "

"It's 2017. A lot has changed, but we can get through it together. I'll show you how. Tony is Howard Stark's son." As she opened her mouth to question, he answered. "Yes, Howard actually settled down. Tony and I are here with SHIELD, well, not exactly."

"What do you mean, 'not exactly'?" Peggy frowned.

"I found the file detailing your capture, and I saw that SHIELD had done nothing about it, so I came to rescue my Best Girl." He smiled at her. "I'll explain everything, but first we need to get out of here."

Peggy nodded. "OK." With that, Steve turned on his comm.

"Alright gang, get ready to head out. I have Peggy, and we'll be to the plane in 5."

Tony's voice came over the comm. "Alright, well…. I'd hurry." An exasperated sigh came from Natasha.

"Stark, what did you do?"

"I just set a little something to cover our tracks…. But I had FRIDAY download the servers and scan the hard docs before I did."

"Do you realize you could have killed us all?" Hill was indignant.

"It was a bad idea, but now we all have to get out of here. Stop bickering and move!" Steve shouted. At his order, he heard everybody maneuver their way towards their respective exits. As for himself, he grabbed Peggy's hand and ran. As they burst out into the sunlight, the pair only made it 50 or so yards before the building exploded. Steve pushed Peggy to the ground, only letting her up once the flame had cleared. They stood coughing in the smoke. "Right there, "he coaxed her. We're almost there."

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Half an hour later, all seven of them were on the plane, not speaking. Clint & Natasha were flying the plane, Steve held Peggy, who was asleep in his arms, as he stretched out on the passenger bench. Hill was using her tablet to do her work, and Tony was flipping through the files he'd gotten from the HYDRA faction. Sam looked towards the pair on the bench. "We did it, Steve," he whispered softly.

"I know." Steve smiled down at the woman he loved. "Thanks for the help."

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So there you have it! Our first official Steggy moment Thanks for reading, please leave a review!

ThePeculiarAvenger


	5. Chapter 5: Interrogation

Alright, so I will try to top that… maybe not this chapter, but there is a possibility that chapter 6 will have a date 333 … btw **I own nothing**. thanks again to Crowley's Apprentice. If you haven't read Ranger's Apprentice, you really should. If you have, you shoulr read her fics. Ok, advertising over! Here we go….

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Chapter 5

"You were inside a Hydra Facility for several decades, is that correct?" Nick Fury stared intimidatingly across the interrogation table. Peggy was relieved. Interrogation was something she knew how to deal with.

"Yes. I was imprisoned, frozen, put into a medically induced coma, tested, and experimented on for upwards of seventy years." Peggy answered the question in a cool tone. Alright, so this wasn't _interrogation,_ per se, as it was from the people on the same side as her.

"What _kinds_ of experiments?" Fury continued to look intimidating, although he'd spent enough time with Romanoff and Hill to know it probably wasn't working.

"Attempts at the Super Soldier Serum. The effect was something of a vitality potion." Peggy folded her arms. The eagle on the wall was irking to her, as she didn't like being reminded that she was being questioned in the same place where it was normally her doing the interrogating. "Slowed aging, faster reflexes, and… perfect instincts." Peggy knew she had no way to prove this, just as strongly as she knew that it was true. She'd spent the las 30 years testing those instincts, and they might have been the only thing keeping her alive.

"Did they- "Fury was cut off as the door slammed open. Natasha Romanoff stormed in.

"Agent Carter, Dr. Banner would like to see you for a medical exam and ask you some questions. I think he'll be a bit _**nicer**_ about it."

"How did you- how did you even get in here?" Fury spluttered. "The door was locked!"

"Agent Romanoff is a damned good spy, from what I've heard." Peggy stood up, her British accent controlling the room. "I'd be concerned if she couldn't pick the lock." As she followed Natasha out of the room, she noticed that the lock itself was more of an electronic panel. Peggy gave a sigh as she remembered how different things were, and how much she still had to learn.

Natasha noticed her companion's disappointment, and spent the rest of the walk to the labs explaining the system of the interrogation lock, as well as how to bypass it.

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Bruce slid the project he'd been working on into the storing system Tony had devised for their lab. Looking up, he blinked in surprise as he noticed the similarities between the two women. "Peggy is here for her physical," Natasha announced.

"I will do my best to answer any questions you might have," Peggy added.

Bruce nodded. "Alright, well, this'll just be a routine physical, at least for now, so I'm gonna need you to change into this med gown." He hands it to her, and Peggy nods. Bruce pulls a curtain around the station and steps outside of it. Walking to the nearest computer monitor, he begins to check what records he already has for Peggy in the database.

"I'm ready," Peggy calls from inside the curtain. When Bruce walks in, she is sitting, perfectly poised on the exam table, brown curls framing her face, her eyes bright with intelligence. Steve notices her as soon as enters the lab. Her skin is pale from so many years in the Hydra facility, and even in the teal colored hospital gown, she looks beautiful. He walks up and kisses her cheek gently.

"How're we doing?" Steve asks.

"I took a blood sample, we'll get results soon. Everything seems normal…. I wonder if I should do an MRI?" Bruce looks thoughtful.

"You're doing the thing where you start talking to yourself in the middle of a conversation." Partially for Steve, partially because she simply feels it is necessary, Natasha has become Peggy's unofficial bodyguard.

"Thanks, Natasha." Bruce is now comparing Peggy's medical records to someone else's. Looking over his shoulder, Steve realizes the new ones are his.

"Peg, an MRI is a brain scan, it won't hurt. They basically take a picture that reads your brainwaves, but you have to go inside a machine." Steve remembered that Peggy had yet to learn about the miracles of modern medicine. "Bruce, what are you doing?"

"The abnormalities in Agent Carter's blood test are similar to yours, as if someone tried to copy them, only without your tests to go off of." Bruce was only half-aware that he was speaking to someone other than himself.

Peggy nodded. "That sounds plausible," she agreed. I know that they were trying to recreate the Super Soldier Serum, but the closest they got was decreased aging and perfect instincts."

"Perfect instincts?" Bruce turned around to face Peggy. "That's odd, you don't normally see that kind of mental enhancement from medical science. Are you sure they're perfect?"

Peggy could never be truly sure, after all, the only way you knew if your instincts weren't perfect was if they failed you. All of her time in the Intelligence community had taught her to always sound sure, so she answered decisively. "Yes. Perfect." Bruce scanned the rest of her med work.

"Well, nothing is wrong with you. I'll definitely need to keep your bloodwork filed, but you're fee to go." Bruce smiled his kind – doctor smile at Peggy. She found it unnerving, probably because she had not had a pleasant experience with a doctor in several decades. Natasha tossed her her clothes as she pulled the curtain again. Steve and Bruce stepped out, Bruce going back to whatever he had been doing before they'd arrived. Natasha set off at a brisk walk, and Steve grabbed Peggy's hand as they followed her.

"I'll finish your Q&A personally, Steve, you can be in the observation room, then we'll give you paperwork and an office! If Hill's pulled the strings like she said she would, it should be a decent one, too." By the time Natasha had finished talking, they'd come to a door.

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Peggy stood in the doorway to her office on the 30th floor of the Triskelion, looking out her window towards the Washington skyline. It was a nice office, with a couch that could become a futon, a dark, polished oak desk that was sufficiently large, a beautiful view from the window, and a separate, smaller room that Peggy was thinking of making a coffee bar. She could rearrange the filing cabinets in there to privatize it. From what she had seen, the need for caffeine in intelligence agents hadn't changed much since the 50's. She turned to Natasha to take her paperwork. "Are there many high ranking women here?" Peggy asked. Natasha's lips twisted into a pleased smirk. "Oh, yes. And nobody messes with us, either." Peggy smiled at that, and with a nod, sat down to her paperwork.

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Thanks for reading! I am shocked and amazed at the number of views this is getting, and I would LOVE it if you would take the time to type a few words in review! By the way, I ship Brutasha, so there will definitely be some fluff there, but this is a Steggy fic, so it will be on the side. ~ ThePeculiarAvenger


	6. Chapter 6: Love

Hey guys, Thank you all for reading, especially Crowley's Apprentice, Qweb, and Mellia Bee, who have reviewed. This took an inexcusably long time because my computer broke, and then I had family stuff, and now I'm horribly late. Please forgive me! Crowley's Apprentice also unofficially Beta Reads this for me, so she's pretty awesome. All you Ranger's Apprentice people, go read her stuff!

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Chapter 6

It had been three days since Steve had rescued Peggy. Three days since he'd gotten back something he'd thought was lost forever. Three days in which Peggy had taken to life in SHIELD life in the modern world, like a bee to honey. Now it was Friday. As Steve entered his new apartment, it looked a lot better than it ever had. Sure, Natasha and Sam had forcibly redecorated and made things look nicer, but there was nothing really that could change the fact that he was in a concrete block a little over 500 square feet. Today, there was something, or rather, someone, completely life – changing sitting on his couch, reading a book on US government & History.

"All that stuff's kinda boring don't you think?" Steve stood behind the couch, grinning as he looked down at Peggy. She smiled, not surprised in the least. It was obvious that she'd heard him come in.

"Well, a few decades shuffling papers for the SSR and you can read almost anything," Peggy replied.

"Hey, I was thinking, we have the weekend off, nothing to do tomorrow, would you like to go out for dinner?" At this, Peggy practically beamed.

"Of course!" I wanted to try that barbecue place Maria recommended- Smoked, was it?"

Steve nodded, encouraged by Peggy's enthusiasm. "Oh, yeah, they have great reviews. It's a nice place, too, we can dress up or dress down."

Peggy tilted her head and looked at nothing in particular, pondering the idea. "Let's dress down. If we have the entire weekend off, maybe you can show me around New York – and tomorrow night we could dress up and have our dance?"

For a moment, Steve couldn't breathe. This was real. He had his dance partner back, and they were together. They would have the rest of their lives together, if they were careful. Instead of replying, he took a step forward and kissed her.

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"Fried chicken and waffles, steak salad, two beers." The waiter set their food on the table in front of them. Peggy popped another hush puppy into her mouth, somehow managing not to get any grease on her blouse, which was lucky, as it was mainly white and patterned with lavender blossoms. "This place has good service." Steve grinned, taking a sip of his beer. "Peggy, I can't believe this." She didn't even ask what he was talking about.

"I know. Us."

"Us?" Steve reached out and took her hand. Peggy nodded.

"I look forward to being in a relationship with you, Captain." Peggy looked into his eyes.

"And I you, Agent." Steve returned the stare. All of the sudden, Peggy quietly started giggling. Before he knew it, Steve was laughing as well. Surprising even herself, Peggy pulled him across the table for a kiss.

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Steve awoke to the loud, invasive, brrrrrrrrrrring of his alarm clock. Even as he reached over the lump in the blankets that was between him and the clock, a pale arm reached out and hit it for him. Turning to face him with a smile, Peggy stretched until her fingers brushed the headboard. "Good morning, Captain."

"Good morning." Steve smiled back at his girlfriend. "We're meeting Natasha, Tony, Bruce, Sam, Clint, and Maria for brunch in a few hours. If we walk to the place, we need to leave in about an hour or so."

"Alright, that should give me time to shower and figure out what I want to wear," Peggy commented. "Then maybe we could put on the news for a bit?" Steve nodded.

"Sure."

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Peggy had been watching the news with an increasing frown on her face for 15 minutes by the time Steve got out of the shower. He turned it off with a sigh. "Nasty stuff. I just do what I can, and ignore what I can't." Peggy smiled.

"I would be tempted to do more than I could."

"And you'd be able to, also." Steve grinned. "Let's go to brunch.

As they exited the SHIELD building, Peggy took a deep breath of fresh air. She had been kept inside for decades, and every breath felt better than anything had in years. She and Steve took the long way through central park, both smiling. Peggy smiled at the world, and Steve smiled at Peggy, because she _was_ his world. They were just down the street from the café when Peggy whipped around and smirked at the redhead in the tan trench coat who was behind them. "Hello Agent Romanoff."

"Please, call me Natasha. For the time being, we don't have to save the world." The one side of the Russian's mouth quirked into a humorless smile. Steve frowned. He was a little concerned that he hadn't realized she was following them earlier, but if Natasha didn't want to be seen, you wouldn't see her.

"Are we headed to the DeLeona?" Steve asked.

"Yes, we've got the group table outside. BrunchFest." Natasha suddenly let out a piercing whistle, and a figure ahead in the crowd turned to look. "CLINT!"

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Brunch, as the start of Peggy's tour of New York, went fairly well. It was eventful, with many pancakes, a spilled carafe of syrup, and a few kisses. The next thing on the agenda was a game of Frisbee in central park. As Tony flung the plastic disk, which was, of course, embellished with his Arc Reactor logo. Within the first five minutes, however, Steve had accidentally smashed it into a tree. As everyone was recovering from their laughter, they realized they'd only brought one Frisbee. Peggy came up with the solution first, grabbing Steve's shield from where he'd leaned it on a tree. Of course, this resulted in Steve and Peggy being the only ones who could play the game. Even Natasha went out, but not for lack of trying. As she leaned against a tree, rubbing her wrist, Steve and Peggy seemed to forget that they were playing with anyone else. The throws got harder, higher, and wilder, and they continued until they were on the ground, laughing blissfully.

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The Avengers spent the rest of the afternoon watching Bones on Netflix in the rec room of Stark Tower, which, Peggy realized, had gotten even better under Tony than it had been with Howard. Also, she enjoyed the show, a wonderful crime drama that was both entertaining and educational. Who knew how many ways there were to solve a murder in the 21st century! Peggy greatly enjoyed the strong female leads. About halfway through season four, however, Steve leaned over and whispered that they only had half an hour until their date. Peggy smiled and went to get ready.

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Steve stared, mouth partially open, as Peggy left her room. She was dressed in a red gown that had a modest neckline but a low, swooping back. Strappy black heels lifted her a few inches higher, but even then, she was no match for his 6 foot 2. She smiled and stretched up to give him a peck on the lips, and he grinned back as he offered her his arm. The bar they were going to was a classic style bar that had a full sized jukebox. Together they laughed, drank, and fed each other steamed shrimp. Then an old, familiar song came on. Steve cocked his head at Peggy. "Care to dance?" She smiled back at him.

"About time." I've been waiting."

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It was past midnight when the Super Soldier and the Spy stumbled, exhausted, into Stark Tower. Though they needed sleep, they'd had little to eat other than appetizers and desserts, and so they sank into the couch with bowls of cereal, resting tired heads on each other's shoulders. Steve planted a soft kiss on Peggy's head, and she pulled his neck down as her lips found his. Their cereal bowls were forgotten as they felt the hot, coursing passion that both had been craving ever since the hangar long ago. Though their need for sleep was great, their need for each other was greater, and together, they made their way to the bedroom for the best night of their lives.

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Alright guys! It took way too long, but there you have it! Chapter 6 will be faster, I promise.


	7. Chapter 7: Proposal

**Hey all! Hope this chapter isn't late…. If it is, I hope it's good enough to make up for it! Thanks again to Crowley's Apprentice, who somehow makes time to proofread my work while writing a beautiful story of her own for Ranger's Apprentice. Thank YOU for reading, and please review! Note: This takes place a month and a half after chapter 6.**

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Chapter 7

Steve knocked lightly on the glass door to Tony's lab. He could feel the bass of the constant AC/DC music thrumming through the door, and the concrete beneath his shoes. Knowing he would get no answer, Steve waved his Avengers ID and stepped in.

Pepper had programmed the volume to automatically turn down at the opening of the door, so Tony actually looked up (after a tap on the shoulder from Bruce). "Hey Capsicle, what'cha need?"

"I was wondering if you could distract the press for a bit this afternoon," Steve replied. "I have some business to take care of, and it would ruin the surprise if said business was blaring on the 6:00 news cycle."

Tony's eyes widened. "Oooh, juicy gossip? Spit it out!" Steve sighed, annoyed.

"If you must know, I'm going to propose to Peggy tonight." He'd already reserved a balcony table with a jukebox at the same bar where they had finally had their dance.

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Steve gave an exasperated sigh as he stumble onto the streets of New York City. Tony had been excited, to say the least, and it had been a struggle to avoid the bombardment of questions. In the end, at least, Steve had managed to confirm that Tony would cause a distraction while he shopped. Bearing that in mind, Steve turned down Fifth Avenue and headed for a nice, smaller jewelry boutique. You could barely turn around without hitting a jeweler's outlet when you got to this part of the city, but this one looked to be a family – owned shop, not one of the big, nationwide chains that always had their commercials on TV. There was a main counter to the left when you walked in, maybe 6 feet long, with a bunch of sale items (mind you, they were still thousands of dollars) in the glass case that made up it's body. The back wall had dozens of glimmering, intricate necklaces hanging from the ceiling to the waits – high cabinets that displayed earrings and bracelets. Steve headed to the right, which had a few glass boxes with velvet cushions. A sign hanging from the ceiling, however, assured him that he would find "The Perfect Ring for the Perfect Girl." The glowing cases revealed glittering rings, each more adorned than the rest. Turning into a nook, however, Steve spotted a thin silver band with a medium sized diamond set half its depth into the metal. It was plain, but the silver was clear and the diamond shone bright. Bringing it to the counter, Steve inwardly considered getting it engraved, but decided that the job probably wouldn't be done in time and he would much rather have Peggy's input on the engraving of their wedding rings.

If she said yes, of course.

Steve froze few feet from the counter, suddenly paralyzed with fear that he might lose the love of his life, for a second time. _Shake it off, Rogers,_ he scolded himself. _That won't happen, and you know it._ Steve gave a wry grin, remembering how he'd told himself something similar when he'd first met Peggy. His attention snapped back to the present as the small woman behind the counter cocked her head at him.

"Can I help you?"

He grinned. "Yes, sorry, I got distracted. Um, this is the ring I want." The woman smiled at him.

"I see. It's a beautiful ring, you have a nice eye. $3,000, and good luck!"

Steve smiled again, smaller this time. "Thanks." He paid, then turned and left the shop.

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Steve was preoccupied with thoughts of how his night would go as he arrived back at the tower. He made it through the lobby without interruption, and rode the elevator up to the floor he shared with Peggy. He knew she was busy, and he wouldn't see her until tonight. Perfect. He smiled. Lost in his thoughts, Steve wasn't expecting any company. He certainly wasn't expecting a red –haired assassin to burst out of his bedroom as he went to turn the knob and demand "show me the ring!"

"Geez, Natasha!" Steve yelped. "Don't startle me like that!"

Natasha smiled sweetly. "I'm a spy. I startle people. Now show me the ring!" Steve removed the small, velvety blue box from his pocket. As he opened it, a small smile spread onto the Russian's face. After a moment, Steve recognized the emotion as satisfaction. Suddenly, Natasha flung herself at Steve and wrapped her arms around him. "Good job, Steve," she whispered. "And good luck."

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Peggy straightened the hem of her blue cocktail dress and ran her fingers through her curls. ( **Dress Pic: . _** )

She swiped on a coat of shimmer gloss over her already – red lips, and quickly added a bit of blush to her cheeks. Honestly, she found makeup tiring, and she knew Steve didn't expect her to wear it, but tonight was going to be special, like all of her nights with Steve, and she felt a certain amount of formality would be nice. With a smile, Peggy turned and headed for the glass elevator to the roof.

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Steve took a deep breath to calm himself and stem the flow of worries and what ifs. He was wearing a dark suit, and he had a bouquet of white daisies for Peggy, in addition to the ring that was currently in his pocket. He'd combed his hair and taken a shower. He was ready.

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As Steve approached the glass elevator to the roof, he realized that Peggy had arrived ahead of him. She smiled. "Been waiting long?" Steve asked.

"Not at all," came the soft reply.

As the elevator arrived. Steve pressed a gentle kiss to Peggy's lips. "These are for you," he added, handing her the flowers. Peggy took a deep sniff, and smiled.

"I've always preferred daises to roses. They have a fresher scent, and it's not as overpowering." They were silent for a few seconds as they admired the glimmering lights of New York.

Steve's lips curled into a coy grin. "Y'know, I've heard it's customary for lovers to kiss in these things," he began. Peggy smiled, obviously liking the thought.

"Oh really?" Before he could reply, she grabbed his shoulders and stood on tiptoe, her high heels making it easy for her lips to reach his. Steve was rather surprised by the heat and passion in the kiss, but recovered in time to wrap his arms around her in a steady embrace. "We've been doing this for over a month now, Steven. You can be a little more spontaneous if you wish." Peggy's voice had a teasing tone as the two separated.

"Well, in that case, don't mind if I do this." Steve swept Peggy around so that he was in the corner of the elevator, lifting her off her feet as he kissed her again. The power of his kiss took her breath away, but they stayed like that until the elevator doors opened onto the roof. Peggy was amazed by the dinner that awaited her. Where she'd been expecting a picnic blanket and some wine, there was a small table draped in a starry midnight blue table cloth, and a wooden chair on either side. There was a vase, filled with water, that she placed her daises in with a smile.

"You've really thought of everything, haven't you?" Peggy couldn't stop grinning. Steve smiled back.

"Even the food," he answered as he lifted the metal lids off the plates that had been set at each place. There was roast chicken, a nice salad, and some potatoes as well. Peggy laughed with delight, leaning over to give Steve a quick peck before they both started their meal.

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After the delicious meal came a stargazing session, which provided Peggy with several minutes of laughter as Steve attempted to inflate the loveseat sized air lounge. About five minutes in, she finally placed a calming hand on his shoulder, then twisted the nozzle into the correct hole. The seat inflated quickly, and as Peggy nestled down into it, using Steve's chest as a pillow with is arm around her shoulders. If you looked up the sky was beautiful, sparkling with stars, and the occasional comet. Both of the lovers found a sense of nostalgia in this; their time with the army had taught them how to navigate by the stars. Picking out each constellation brought laughs and memories. If they looked down, New York twinkled with lights, the Times Square billboards large and bright enough to be seen from where they sat. "It's beautiful," Peggy whispered. Steve pressed a kiss to her lips, and even as they broke away, he kept a hand on her arm and maintained eye contact.

"Peggy," Steve took a deep breath as he produced the ring from his pocket. "I have a question." Peggy's eyes flitted down to the ring, then back up to his. He heard her breath catch in her throat as she realized what was happening. "Will you marry me?" Peggy didn't answer as she kissed him with such force that they both fell into the air lounge. The blue polyester was smothering Steve as they separated, but he still managed to crack a grin. "You want the ring?" Peggy kissed him, softer this time, as he slipped the ring onto her finger. She sighed, admiring the delicate metalwork and shimmering diamond. "It's beautiful," Peggy whispered.

"Just like you," Steve murmured back.

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So… that took a while. I had spring break, sorry. But there will be a wedding, so yay! I want Steve and Peggy to have inscriptions on their wedding rings, so lets have a little contest. Review with ideas, and a week after this is posted, I'll pick my favorite! Thanks for putting up with my scattered updates, I will try to write more! Please review, I can take ideas if you have them.


	8. Chapter 8: Meeting

**Hey all! I'm SOOOO SORRY! Summer is hectic and computer – less. I hope this chapter is good enough to make up for it! Thanks again to Crowley's Apprentice, who somehow makes time to proofread my work while writing a beautiful story of her own for Ranger's Apprentice. Thank YOU for reading, and please review! Note: This takes place a month and a half after chapter 6.**

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Chapter 8

Peggy settled into her paperwork. After the events of her weekend, even three complaints in a row about Stark being stupidly dangerous in the lab weren't enough to ruin her mood. A cup of coffee on her desk and a file in her hand, she was ready for the day, and certainly not expecting Maria, Natasha, and Pepper to burst into her office. Natasha was chewing someone out via comms in Russian.

" _Seychas u menya yest' boleye vazhnyy biznes. Pozabot'tes' o sebe, vy nekompetentnyye zhopy! I postaraytes' ochen' tyazhelo zapomnit' Alfavit. Podacha ne tak uzh i trudna, khorosho?_ _"_

 _("_ I have more important business right now. Take care of it yourself, you incompetent a**holes! And try your very hardest to remember the Alphabet. Filing is not that hard, OK?") Peggy spoke Russian for several reasons, and raised her eyebrows.

"Why do I have a feeling that 'more important business' doesn't actually have anything to do with work?" Peggy was skeptical.

"Because it doesn't." Maria looked up from her tablet for long enough to gesture at Peggy's hand with a smile. "Congratulations!"

Pepper put down her briefcase and held up a bottle of what looked like champagne. "I came by for the Avengers meeting, but I stopped by early. I thought we'd celebrate!"

Peggy was still unsure. "Ladies, it's 9 in the morning."

"That's why we brought sparkling cider," replied Natasha, who was perusing through Peggy's small notebook of modern items (she'd gotten the idea from Steve) and occasionally scribbling something down. Maria, who had vanished unnoticed into the coffee bar a few minutes ear, reappeared with cups. Peggy decided that it was fairly hopeless to attempt to continue her work, and accepted a glass of sparkling cider before indulging her friends with details of her night with Steve. Well, most of the details, anyway.

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Steve knocked on the door to Peggy's office, surprised to hear several female voices all speaking at once. As he opened the door, his face broke into a grin at the sight. Natasha was lounging on Peggy's couch, speaking lazily to someone on her comm in Russian and adding her input to the conversation in English. Maria was tapping through her tablet as she sat with her back to the bookshelf, making a snide remark every now and then. From Pepper's exasperated comments and Peggy's small chuckles and sighs, Steve was fairly certain they were discussing Tony. "Afternoon, Ladies," he greeted them. "Who's ready to become thoroughly exhausted in the space of the next hour?" Avengers meetings were always exhausting.

Hill was not amused. "Remove the log from your own eye before the mite from your neighbor's. A rousing speech on how we're the best chance the world's got only adds more noise, no matter how helpful you mean it to be." Steve sighed. Natasha laughed. He smirked at her.

"Hey Romanoff, remember that time you had to actually write lines because you threw a knife across the table?"

"I'll throw a knife at you if you don't shut up."

Maria sighed. "Please save the banter for the meeting? I'd like to at least arrive on time." As the group filed out of the office, she fell in step next to Peggy. "Welcome to the Avengers, Carter. Hope you survive the experience."

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"You're the ONLY one here that had a say in the way this ended up. YOU'RE the one who saved his own skin. Even your second in command had enough SENSE and DECENCY to help us save her!" Steve Rogers was not someone who got mad often. Annoyed, sure, but not truly mad. This, however, was a full- on rage. He was not a nice man to see angry. Maria Hill had had enough. For the past 45 minutes, she'd suffered through the tensest Avengers meeting since the time Coulson had discovered the fate of his trading cards. As if that weren't enough, now her job was in jeopardy. She stood, raising her voice to be heard over the angry captain.

"Regardless of my part in this mission, and regardless of whether or not it was the right thing to do, Captain Rogers, you have NO RIGHT to reveal information that might risk my job-"

Tony was speaking now, cutting her off. "Yeah, he's just supposed to keep your secrets, and god forbid he tell the truth-"

"My – SHPIONY, radi boga-"

"Fury has a job to do-"

"Calm DOWN, everyone-"

"SAVING THE WORLD INCLUDES IT'S INDIVIDUALS-"

"And you WONDER why I tried to hack your systems the day we first met-"

"Tony, that's enough, TONY-"

Peggy stood, raised her pistol, and fired three rounds into the ceiling. The talking ceased as she heard the metallic clicks of pistols loading, and the _whirring_ of Tony's suit powering up.

 _Now_ she had their attention. Granted, they were all pointing weapons at her, but she had their attention.

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 **Ta- Da! Cliffhanger! Peggy has found her bridesmaids, (all but one, at least) and now she has to defuse the bomb that is the Avengers. Good luck, Peg! I apologize for any errors in the Russian. I don't speak it, so I used google translate, which I know can be unreliable. In the argument scene, Natasha is speaking Russian, and she says "we're SPIES, for God's sake-" before she gets cut off by Clint. As soon as I have Peggy's speech in my head, I'll start the next chapter! Hope it'll be up soon, please review! Love y'all!**


	9. Chapter 9: Calming

HEEEEEEEY! I'm excited for this chapter, if you couldn't tell. Today, Peggy ends arguments, gets back into hand – to - hand combat, and meets her final bridesmaid. Thanks always to Crowley's Apprentice for unofficially beta reading, I own nothing (yet), and I would love it if you would leave a review!

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Chapter 10

Peggy looked around the room as The Avengers slowly lowered their weapons. "I did not realize, until recently, that the mission to retrieve me from HYDRA was unsanctioned. As a person who has had experience as the head of an intelligence agency, I recognize the need to make difficult choices. Whether or not different choices should have been made is beside the point. The point is that you are all Earth's Mightiest Heroes, and none of you can sit still for even an hour without very nearly starting a war. Mr. Stark, even you, a hugely public figure, a billionaire, the glorious Iron Man, heartthrob, supposed 'role model' to children everywhere, needs an assistant to take notes for you because you are simply too incapable of paying attention! As if Ms. Potts does not have anything else she needs to do with her time! Agent Barton, though your work for this agency is remarkable, your habit of deploying confetti arrows at randomly inopportune times is not. Agent Romanoff, your skill set is one of the most refined I have seen, and yet you continue to use it for your own gain rather than making the smart, or helpful, choice. Need I go on?" Peggy surveys the faces in the room. Pepper looks halfway between shell – shocked and satisfied, Tony has his jaw set as if he'd like to argue but can't come up with a convincing answer, Natasha actually looks ashamed, which is surprising. Even more surprising, Barton looks guilty. The rest of the room is simply staring at her with wide eyes. Steve has an expression on his face similar to the time she "tested" his shield.

"Good. Now, I don't believe we'll be making any further progress with this meeting, so I suggest we cut it short. I suspect all of us could use the extra hour and a quarter, and I don't mean for work. Please, go do something to relax; each one of you needs it. Unwind somehow. Peggy's orders." With a quick smile, she turned on her heel and headed for the doorway, as she left the room, she swore she could here Fury mutter, "I should give that girl a promotion."

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Peggy had intended to spend her time hitting and shooting things on the SHIELD training floor, but she only made it past part one before her plans were interrupted. In the stall of the shooting range next to her was Sharon Carter, whom she had met a few weeks ago. They'd had coffee a few times, and had become friends, despite the potential for awkwardness that was their biological relationship. As she watched Sharon fire five rounds into the center of the target, something occurred to her.

"Sharon," she called, raising her voice a bit so the blonde would hear her through the earmuffs, can I ask you a question?"

Sharon turned at the British voice, removing her headgear as she did. "Yeah, sure. Shoot." She smirked at her pun.

Peggy nodded at the humor, returning the smile. "Um, Steve and I are getting married."

Sharon's face lit up. "That's great! I'm so happy for you two!" There was a pause. "That is also a statement, not a question."

Peggy could see that the Carter blood definitely ran strong in Sharon's veins. " I was wondering if you would like to be one of my bridesmaids."

The blonde smiled from ear to ear. "That sounds fantastic!" Still smiling, she wrapped Peggy in a tight hug. Yes, definitely a Carter.

Just after Sharon finished squeezing the air out of Peggy's lungs, Maria walked in, carrying three fancy – looking pistols. "Hey, I pulled rank and got these off the latest shipment with minimal paperwork. Let's celebrate!"

"By pulled rank, you mean intimidated the crap out of some interns. There's a difference, you know." Sharon quipped, smirking at her boss.

Maria stopped smiling and moved very suddenly to put three rounds in the neck of the dummy. If Peggy was one to be intimidated, that would've done it. Sharon appeared to share her sentiments, as she backed off. "OK, point taken, how do these babies work?"

Satisfied, Maria explained the targeting systems, the biometric locks, and the switchable cartridges (they could hold regular or ICER bullets). The three women quickly used up the rest of their break shooting at the targets.

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By the time Peggy had completed five filing assignments, three meetings, and one rescue involving junior agents mucking up a mission handling sensitive materials, she was exhausted. A little under two hours break was simply not enough for all the things she had to deal with on a daily basis. As she swiped her key card and opened the door to her office, she froze. Something was wrong. She was not alone.

With a deep, focusing breath, Peggy carefully drew her pistol, crept forward, and flicked on the lights. She was not immediately accosted by armed Hydra thugs, so she relaxed enough to take in her surroundings. Said surroundings happened to be approximately three SHIELD agents, one CEO of Stark Industries, a set of Apples to Apples, a set of Cards Against Humanity, and a rather shocking amount of alcohol. Stowing her pistol and taking another deep breath, she addressed her bridesmaids.

"Ladies. Would you like to tell me why you decided that you should invite yourselves into my office at-" she checked her watch. "nine o'clock at night?"

In unison, they all smiled at her, and then, loud enough to make her jump, screamed, "BACHELORETTE PARTY!"

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Wow! I actually got a chapter out! Anyways, if anyone's interested in reading fic about time traveling SHIELD agents, involving Fitzsimmons in the 1940s and Peggy Carter in the present, it will be up soon as a crossover between Agents Of SHIELD and Avengers. Please review!


	10. Chapter 10: Attack

**Alright! A chapter! In this one, we have a bachelorette party which goes astray. I tried to write fluff, but Jessica Jones glared at me until I gave her a cameo. Sort of. And I have decided that Wanda is also a bridesmaid, but because I am lazy, no explanation will be entered into the previous chapters. Sorry. Also, I am a slow updater. See the end of Chapter 4 of Belief. Anyway... Prepare yourself. Assassins and Alcohol.**

Peggy was drunk, that much she was sure of. As Natasha drank straight from a bottle of Russian vodka, Wanda mixed fancier cocktails, Pepper dealt another round of Apples to Apples, and Sharon and Maria tried to start some drinking game involving pistols, it occurred to her that perhaps this is getting a little out of hand. "Ladies," she called, her words only slightly slurred, "perhaps it's time to calm down."

"Aw, c'mon, Peggy, we're just getting started," whines Sharon. "Maria, Pepper, Tash, you agree with me." Pepper looks as though she's more used to fancy wine than the kind of hard liquor spies keep in their offices, and says nothing.

"Well, if this goes on much longer, I think it would be in our best interests to move it off of SHIELD property. Mainly because of the 24/7 live security monitoring," Hill explains with a smirk.

Natasha stands, not even swaying, despite the fact that she's had at least half a bottle of straight vodka. "In answer to all of that, firstly, Carter one, we're not done yet. Carter two, I am not quite drunk enough to tolerate nicknames. Pepper, I think maybe you should go home, because you actually have to be presentable in the morning, and you probably don't have much interest in my next suggestion anyway." At this, Pepper raises an eyebrow.

"What's happening next?"

Natasha looks proud, which really should have set off a dozen warning bells, but Peggy can't bring herself to be scared. "We're gonna lurk in dark alleys and beat the shit out of assholes that think they're gonna be the ones winning." Her smile turns evil. Peggy frowns as she nods, considering. It's a horrible idea, but fun. And aren't those ideas always the best?

"Wanda, Pepper, we could drop you two off at the Tower beforehand," Peggy offers, ignoring Maria's slight start of surprise as she warms to the idea. Pepper nods gratefully as Wanda shakes her head.

"No, thanks," declines the young woman. "I know I'm not as advanced as most of you, but I've had training, and it's not like I'll be out there alone. Call it a coping mechanism or whatever, but beating up potential rapists or muggers sounds like a good time."

"Christ, Romanoff, we can't leave you alone with anyone," laughs Pepper. "I would like to go back to the Tower, if that's okay. But nobody here is allowed to drive."

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Having delivered Pepper back to the Avengers Tower, Peggy, Natasha, Wanda, and Maria have already stopped an ATM robbing by the time they make it to the alley behind a hotel building in a rather sketchy part of New York.

"Wow, Hill, I'm impressed," murmurs Natasha. "Why do you know these things again? And who names a town Hell's Kitchen?"

"Crimelord got ambitious a few months ago, and some idiot who may or may not have superpowers started beating up thugs in a Devil suit," replies Maria, prompting a sigh from Peggy.

"Why is this my life?" Wanda asks, only half serious in her complaint.

Before Peggy can offer a sympathetic reply, Natasha motions for them to be quiet. A fire alarm is going off inside the hotel, and people are scurrying out, sounding worried.

"Should we leave, if there's actually a fire?" Asks Wanda.

"Yes, if there actually was a fire, we would leave," replies Maria, her voice barely audible. "But this is something else."

Wanda opens her mouth to ask what "something else" is, but before she can, Natasha makes a "wait here" motion, and darts toward the sound of an opening door. Not five minutes pass before she returns, but the amount that does is still worrying, for someone of Natasha's skill. There is too little noise for multiple assailants, and the other option would be someone well trained and merciless, but merciless doesn't line up with someone who pulls a fire alarm to evacuate civilians, so Maria is beginning to worry that they're dealing with someone with superpowers just as Natasha comes around the corner, unharmed.

Maria's relief lasts only as long as it takes her to notice that Natasha is not alone. "Introduce me," says the stranger.

"I will introduce you," Natasha says in a disturbingly compliant voice. "This is Maria, and Wanda, and Peggy."

As Maria begins to reach into her holster, the man looks into her eyes. "Maria. Show me your gun." Maria almost scoffs. She'll show it to him, alright. She'll shoot him-

"I will show you my gun." The words come from her own mouth as she lifts her gun, handing it to him. What. The Hell. She tries to yank her arm back, but why did she want to do that? He'd asked to see her gun. She should show it to him.

"HEY." Wanda steps forward, ignoring the arm Peggy throws out to stop her. "Who are you, anyway?" He turns to her, a disturbing smile curving over his face.

"Manners, Wanda. Smile," He whispers.

A chill runs down her spine as he says her name. She realizes that she's the only one who even has a chance at resistance. Lifting her arm, she reaches into his mind, and gasps as horrors flood her brain. Squeezing her eyes tight, she recognizes the click of a pistol. Well. Thinking fast, she acts only on instinct. She pushes out, throwing him back, then turns around, ducking as Peggy aims a gun at her head. "You don't want to do this," Wanda whispers, desperately staring at Peggy as she tries to break the hypnotized state. "Peggy." She reaches into the Brit's mind, and finds an odd wall, which she visualizes as a sort of film blocking Peggy's true thoughts. The film, or wall, whatever, must be the representation of the man's control over her. The only desire Peggy is acting on currently is a desire to kill Wanda. As Peggy has several decades more experience than she, this could prove problematic. Wanda pushes against the wall, and tries an old trick. She takes a strong memory, normally a person or specific event or experience. She's used this before, during her first meeting with the Avengers, but this time, she twists it into happiness. "C'mon, Carter, gimme something here," she whispers. Suddenly, she finds what she needs. There's a mountaintop field, a picnic, and Steve. Others, too. It looks like Italy, maybe. A memory of war? Odd choice, but her friends are odd women. As she feels the cold press of metal against her head, Wanda withdraws from Peggy's mind and blindly reaches out to her assailant. This time it's Natasha, and Wanda treads carefully this time, trying to pick a memory that isn't to painful out of the shatters that make up the Russian's mind. She finds one, with Clint and his family, that seems to involve a lake and water guns. That'll do. As she feels the gun leave her head, Wanda stares into the eyes of the man, still standing a few yards away, Maria's gun in his hand. "Put down the gun, leave us, and don't come back," says Wanda, glaring at him as she mentally shoves him away. There's a tense minute of resistance, but she pushes harder, and he places the gun on the ground and walks away. "Maria, Sharon. Snap out of it." Wanda snaps her fingers, and Peggy grabs Sharon as if trying to shake her awake. Predictably, this ends with Sharon nearly tackling her. Wanda releases them fully, and they stand there for a minute, trying to comprehend the events of the past ten minutes.

"Bloody hell, Wanda, I tried to shoot you! Sorry.." Peggy trails off, looking guilty.

"Hey, it's not your fault, it was my idea," protests Natasha. Wanda holds up her hand, shaking her head.

"It's nobody's fault. That was mind control. And besides, I'm fine. Don't worry about it." A look of disgust crosses Maria's face.

"Great. That guy will be a hell of a lot of paperwork tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," emphasizes Peggy. "Let's go home."

There are nods of assent, and the six of them begin the slow trek home, reaching the tower around twenty minutes later. There are murmured goodnights ans they board the elevator, and then they all go off to their respective rooms.

 **I swear, I intended for this to be light and fluffy. However, the rest of the MCU is demanding to be included. So. Kilgrave cameo. Hope you like it!**


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